Interning in Carlisle, anything I should know before accepting my offer?

Submitted by ilikefrenchhorns t3_1144vbf in Pennsylvania

Hello all, I just got an offer for a summer internship that would place me in Carlisle, PA for 10 weeks this summer. I am already pretty sure I will accept the offer but I just wanted to ask y'all for your opinions before I formally accept. I am currently 21 years old and my shifts for the internship would have me working 4 days in a row and then having 3 days off. How is the night life there? Is it easy to meet people? I am from North Dakota and currently go to school in Missouri so being all the way in PA will be way different for me but my biggest thing is getting stuck there and not meeting anyone and wasting my summer away without being able to get away from the work grind.

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Other than that, how is the housing? I have the option of either taking corporate housing for $300/month or receiving a $2,000/month housing stipend if I wanted to find my own place. I am already leaning towards corporate housing just to save me the headache of having to find a place for only ten weeks and dealing with getting it furnished and stuff. Thank you all for any advice or insights to the area! I'm a huge Philly sports fan so I'm excited to get out to Pennsylvania finally!

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russ257 t1_j8uc1og wrote

Take the corporate house if as you likely won’t find anyone willing to rent for 10 weeks. The people you meet will likely be coworkers. Dot. Consider it wasting your summer consider it an investment in Your future.

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ilikefrenchhorns OP t1_j8uczwa wrote

Dope, that’s what i figured would be the case with renting. Thank you for responding!

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IamSauerKraut t1_j8ufqci wrote

With Dickinson and the law school pretty much closed for the summer, Carlisle will be a bit slower than usual, but there are things to do in town, plus Gettysburg is not far away. If you have a car, DC, Baltimore and Philly are each a bit more than 2 hours distant. HersheyPark is less than an hour away.

If you are into the outdoors, plenty to do. Lots of open space with hiking trails. A big lake is not far off.

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bclary59 t1_j8xv2w0 wrote

If you do decide to rent check out Furnished Finders. Google it. Short term furnished housing. Started by a travel nurse for travel nurses but anyone is welcome to use.

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DBKilladelph t1_j8urjq1 wrote

I’m from Carlisle and still live there. Carlisle is a small, safe town with lots of history. I love it there. There’s 8-10 good restaurants in town, and 5-6 decent places to grab a drink for a 21 year old. Dickinson College is a very, very nice liberal Arts College in town and also home to the Penn State School of Law. It will be summer so less students, but some stay for summer classes I think.

Towards Harrisburg there are dozens of great places to eat/drink and meet people in early 20s, just of course must be careful drinking and driving.

The Appalachian Trail runs through Carlisle and there are tons of close, awesome options for hiking and camping close by. If you like to fish, we’re right on the yellow breeches which is a highly rated limestone trout stream.

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IamSauerKraut t1_j8v4pe6 wrote

  1. the law school is not affiliated with the college;

  2. the App Trail does not go thru Carlisle.

  3. Yellow Breeches comes out of Michaux somewhere between Ship and Pine Grove Forest. It runs between Mt. Holly Springs and Boiling Springs and empties into the Susq River south of Harrisburg.

  4. Letort Springs Run is along the east side of Carlisle. It empties into the Conodoguinet, which empties into the Susq near midtown Harrisburg. Letort and Yellow Breeches are not connected.

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DBKilladelph t1_j8v4u21 wrote

Carlisle is bigger than you think, my friend…

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IamSauerKraut t1_j8v51lw wrote

I've been to Carlisle a few times. But what I stated is true.

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DBKilladelph t1_j8v5css wrote

Obviously I am not saying these things pass through the center of town. They all exist within the Carlisle Borough and Dickinson Township and are facets of the town that many people enjoy, which is what this person asked about.

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Aribaye t1_j92e31c wrote

The Appalachian Trail runs north/south through the valley about 2 miles east of town center.

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IamSauerKraut t1_j933cmv wrote

>The Appalachian Trail runs through Carlisle

So, you agree with my statement? Saaweeet!

Now do Yellow Breeches.

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Powerful-Anywhere761 t1_j8uq80k wrote

Used to live in Carlisle (and Harrisburg also). Sweet little town and it’s only getting bigger and better. More restaurants and breweries now.

Good thing about Carlisle is you are between Gettysburg and Harrisburg. Harrisburg is great for night life in the summer. Uber shouldn’t be too bad to take back and forth. Try to take advantage of the city. Gettysburg is great also as far as history and nature goes.

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KindKill267 t1_j8ukiqm wrote

Downtown Carlisle has imo a lot of decent places to grab a drink, plus you're fairly close to Harrisburg.

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1989throwa t1_j8v4bwi wrote

I grew up in Carlisle, family still lives there.

It is a FANTASTIC small town. There are a number of breweries, hard cideries, and lots of small businesses. If you go to the the local hang outs enough and you talk with folks you will find folks who like to have fun. If you are one for books, be sure to check out Whistlestop Bookshop. Be sure to check out the farmers market and if you like ice cream there are several nearby creameries.

There are a number of museums not too far away (check out the Army Heritage and Education Center). Try to pay attention to local events. Ask coworkers who live in the area if anything is happening locally.

Also, you can easily get to a number of other small towns and small cities. Having grown up in Carlisle, I thought nearby towns and cities were a long way away.... They're not. Now that I live in the central mountains, I very viscerally know that they are super close to each other. Since you grew up in North Dakota, you will probably think distances Carlislians think are "too far" are nothing for you.

The rental market in the Harrisburg-Carlisle Metro area is, in a word, hot. Sticking with the corporate housing probably will mean fewer headaches for you.

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OneTrueDweet t1_j8xksh5 wrote

That weird glow in the sky is from the organic remedies grow

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eviljelloman t1_j8xefxh wrote

You'll be fine. Carlisle is better than North Dakota and Missouri. I'd rather be in Centralia for an internship compared to either of those places you're coming from, TBH.

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csoup1414 t1_j8xjx0c wrote

We travel to Carlisle for business often. It's a wonderful town. Not a huge city feel but plenty of stuff to do around town and in the places nearby.

Definitely try Issei Noodle if you enjoy Asian cuisine. We always try to stop when we're there.

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AtlJayhawk t1_j938ygt wrote

Carlisle is beautiful. I'm looking forward to moving there this summer from Memphis.

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Sillycats2 t1_j9vazdk wrote

If you’re a car guy, the Carlisle Fairgrounds has a show almost every weekend - Corvettes, Ford, Dodge, then if summer show with tons of classic and vintage cars. It keeps things hopping in downtown. There are a number of street fairs and a Farmers’ Market every Wednesday. Summers also have First Fridays downtown with different themes. Fireworks on the Fourth of July.

If you like to fish, bring your gear because the streams around here are pretty decent. You just need a license.

They just built a (small) skate park, plus there is a public pool and a YMCA (newly renovated.) Kids from Dickinson and Penn State do stick around for the summer, but not a lot. You’ll probably meet people mostly through work and your neighborhood, which is what most of us do.

What do you mean by “night life”? If you’re talking place you can go with friends, have food, or snacks and adult beverages and talk, Carlisle has you covered. As others pointed out, there’s microbrews, bars and restaurants with liquor licenses.

If you’re talking live bands and dancing, that’s Harrisburg (about 30 minutes away.)

It’s about two hours to DC, Philly and Baltimore, where you can see major concerts/museums/events. Though a fair few decent acts show up at Hershey Stadium (40-min drive), HMAC and Sunoco Theatre (Harrisburg). Touring casts of Broadway shows come to the Hershey Theatre. SIX, Hadestown and Come from Away are playing this season.

OH. And in case no one mentioned it, you can’t exactly buy wine/beer in the grocery store. And all liquor must be bought at the state store (PA Wine and Spirits shop.) You can get wine/beer/six-packs at the grocery store and Sheetz (convenience store), but they have to paid for separately.

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SlowPhilosopher8783 t1_j8yqt2g wrote

On time off try to travel a bit further East and try Wawa. Build your own hoagies and other food sampling’s. Make sure you hit a Primanti Bros although the original in Pittsburgh is the best at least you’ll get a taste of a regional favorite…

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FlshTuxedoPinkTrpedo t1_j8ufshb wrote

Night life in Carlisle? Nope. You’re moving to the middle of nowhere.

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ModernBalaboosta t1_j8uo78w wrote

It could be worse. You’re at least close to Harrisburg and the great thing about Carlisle is you’re basically a shorter drive to Baltimore, DC and Philly so it allows you the chance to leave on weekends and go places relatively easy especially via Amtrak.

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ilikefrenchhorns OP t1_j8ufyke wrote

Fair enough

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WCAIS_PA_Individual t1_j8unq9y wrote

Harrisburg, has plenty , Even York. And you're only an hour and change from Baltimore, 2 hours from DC. There's no reason you won't find people to hang out with

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FlshTuxedoPinkTrpedo t1_j8ugnh5 wrote

To be fair, I consider anything between Philly and Pittsburgh to be the middle of nowhere. I’m sure there’s a good bar or two.

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ell0bo t1_j8v20n1 wrote

It's a nice place if you like outdoors stuff and the occasional drink.

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